Welcome to USC's News Room

With the launch of our new season Firetrap range, we got chatting to womenswear designer Lorna & menswear designer Osvaldo to get some inside info on what's been happening at Firetrap HQ, what inspires their designs and what their must have pieces for Spring/Summer are.

Q. Hi guys, great to catch up with you! What’s been happening at Firetrap this season?

L. Its been a busy season, we are currently finishing designing the Autumn Winter collection. I’m off to India in 2 weeks to design the last few pieces of the Christmas Party story. We have lots of exciting things in the pipeline for Spring Summer too with our marketing team working on our photoshoot at the moment.

O. Here at Firetrap we have a lot of new menswear projects and we are working very hard on them... but that’s still top secret, so stay tuned to find out more!

Q. As designers we can imagine some days can be pretty busy! What’s on your diaries for today?

L. This morning I will be drawing up our Autumn Winter range of accessories and deciding on colours. I then have a meeting with a company which makes embroidered/sequinned dresses for us to see what new techniques they have developed. Paris fashion week is in mid flow so I am also busy researching all the catwalk shows so we can start putting together our new trend and colour ideas for the Firetrap Spring Summer 2015 Collection.

O. Days are never the same and that’s probably what’s more exciting. Today I have fittings with the model to ensure that all the garments in the collection look at their best before going into production! Then, together with the rest of the menswear team, I’ll have a meeting with the director and the buyer team to present next spring/summer ’15 trends, this is crucial to decide the direction we’re going to take before we start designing for the new season. After that, I will work on some fabrics research and prepare new sketches for additional styles I need to add to the autumn/winter 14 range – I will be working on knitwear and shirts.

Q. What would you say your main design influences have been for this range?

L. The Firetrap SS14 range was inspired by an adventurous attitude. Our muse was a strong independent girl who lusts for adventures and travels the world to seek them. She mashes up influences from the beaches of India, to the jungles of a tropical paradise. This vibe creates a laidback collection with a strong mix of jersey prints, denim and festival dresses. As always, every garment is twisted with the Firetrap rock and roll late night design attitude.

O. Anything can be a source of inspiration, really. For this collection I have been very much inspired by the indigo trend that is coming through from Japanese and Scandinavian brands at the moment.

Q. What’s the best piece of style advice you’ve been given and who was it from?

L. ‘’Be confident in yourself and you can wear anything with style’’ my mum!

O. “Never underestimate the importance of details" – that’s what I learnt from my very first job. And it became my rule since then!

Q. If you could pick any three key pieces from our new season Firetrap collection, what would they be and why?

L. My standout fav piece is a really bold parrot print bodycon dress -the fit is amazing on and the print is super cool. I am also a big fan of the ripped knee jeans - they have a very authentic denim wash and a knee rip which optitomise the ‘off duty model’ grunge look. Throw on a printed tee with these jeans and your ready to go. To rock Double Denim wear with our Ripped up denim jacket, THE statement jacket for spring. Coral is a really key colour for SS14 as it suits everyone and blows away winter blues, get ready for festival season with our aztec embroidered coral swing dress, pair with black boots and a leather jacket for ultimate festival style.

O. I would personally pick
- “HERON ROM" DENIM a rinse wash on a dark denim base – I like the clean look of these, something everyone should have in their wardrobe!
- “VIDEO" the perfect t-shirt for a real summer festival vibe
- “STORM" a very cool and versatile hooded jacket perfect for the unpredictable British weather. And it will look good with your jeans!